It started the day I received news that Facebook, when going public, announced they would have seven men on their board of directors – and not one single woman. The book’s Kickstarter gives all the details plus a link a free 27-page sample of the book, including the Table of Contents of the finished work.

Part memoir and part essay, Women on The Board – A Vision for the Future is a reflection on the complex issues that surround the goal of getting more women side-by-side with men in positions of power where so many of the biggest decisions that affect our lives are made.

The memoir portion of this work is based on my 40 years of experience in both Japan and the United States as a media producer and marketing consultant, usually as the only woman on a work team. The essays are in a journalistic style, covering a variety of topics that affect women and men at work.

In addition to conveying my personal vision for the future, I hope this book sets off a fresh dialogue between all of us on how we can create a more equitable, creative, fun and productive workplace for both women and men as we work together going forward. Because we are all in this together!

I write about how it is up to us as women to continue to forge our way into the upper echelons of business, each in our own way. For some that will be working in a traditional 9 to 5 structure, and for others it will mean designing new business models that put women’s priorities first.

In either case, trying to force ourselves into the male paradigm of what it is to work for a living is outdated and needs rethinking. In my book, I propose that it is time to begin a more widespread conversation about what suits us as women, claim our power and make it happen.

Funds raised during the Kickstarter project period, which began on October 19 and runs until November 7, will be used to finish editing and formatting, a translation into Japanese, and a book promotion website. The fundraising goal is $22,100, which will cover the final editing and polishing, book design, book launch website, and a Japanese translation.

By utilizing this new crowdsourcing funding model for quickly completing a project on a topic that is time sensitive and urgent, Kickstarter is an intriguing way to polish and launch this book project as well as bring it to an additional group of readers in Japan in a Japanese translation. Readers’ support both as backers and to help spread the word is greatly appreciated!

Women 2.0 readers: How will we increase the ratio of women in the boardroom? Let us know in the comments.

About the guest blogger: Deborah Grant is author of Women On The Board – A Vision For The Future. She is a producer, marketing consultant, and writer residing in Santa Monica, California. Born and raised in Japan, she is a citizen of the United States but considers herself to be half Japanese in spirit, as well as an active member of the larger global community. She has one daughter and two granddaughters. Follow her on Twitter at @BirdieDG.